A settlement tracking group says Israel has approved the largest seizure of land in the occupied West Bank in over three decades.

Israel has approved the largest seizure of land in the occupied West Bank in over three decades, a settlement tracking group said Wednesday, a move that could further worsen already soaring tensions linked to the ongoing war in Gaza.

Authorities recently approved the appropriation of 12.7 square kilometers (nearly 5 square miles) of land in the Jordan Valley, according to a copy of the order obtained by The Associated Press. Data from Peace Now, the tracking group, indicate it was the largest single appropriation approved since the 1993 Oslo accords at the start of the peace process.

Violence has surged in the West Bank since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack ignited the war in Gaza, with Israel carrying out near-daily military raids that often spark deadly gunbattles with Palestinian militants. Palestinians have also carried out a string of attacks on Israelis.

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    JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel has approved the largest seizure of land in the occupied West Bank in over three decades, a settlement tracking group said Wednesday, a move that could further worsen already soaring tensions linked to the ongoing war in Gaza.

    Violence has surged in the West Bank since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack ignited the war in Gaza, with Israel carrying out near-daily military raids that often spark deadly gunbattles with Palestinian militants.

    The Palestinians view the expansion of settlements in the occupied West Bank as the main barrier to any lasting peace agreement and most of the international community considers them illegal or illegitimate.

    Smotrich laid out his plans for the West Bank at a conference for his ultranationalist Religious Zionism Party last month, a recording of which was obtained by Peace Now.

    Hamas cited the expansion of West Bank settlements as one of its justifications for the Oct. 7 attack into southern Israel, in which Palestinian militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took around 250 hostage.

    Israeli restrictions, the ongoing fighting and the breakdown of law and order have curtailed humanitarian aid efforts, causing widespread hunger and sparking fears of famine.

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